Children from 12 to 17 years old in HCM City have been vaccinated against Covid-19.

Mr. Nguyen Van Long (Tan Binh District, HCM city) said that no one in his family had caught Covid-19 in the last outbreak.

“In my opinion, kids have an immune system which can be strengthened by exercise, and by absorbing micronutrients. If it comes down to personal preference, I will not allow my child to receive a vaccine in the first phase. I’d like to gather more information before making a decision,” Long told VietNamNet.

Mrs. Thu Lan (Cau Giay district, Hanoi) was worried that students may have to suffer side effects which have not been carefully examined.

“I think that I will not let my child receive the vaccine in the upcoming phase. Even if the school administrator does not allow my child to go to school, he can join virtual classes,” Mrs. Thu Lan said.

Mr. Tran Xuan Son (District 10, HCM city), on the other hand, is looking forward to the vaccination for his child.

“As my son has been preparing for his examination since last year, he has only been attending school and extra classes. After that, he spent most of his time studying online. He rarely had a chance to go out as I was afraid that he could catch the coronavirus. I am really looking forward to this upcoming vaccination. With this way, children will soon be able to go to school,” Son said.

Mrs. Le Thi Anh Van (District 3, HCM City) expressed doubt about the safety of the vaccine.

“I assume that the Health Ministry has already given careful consideration to issues related to which vaccine is best for children. However, we should be paying more attention to kids’ mental health as they have been taking online classes for a long time, instead of worrying about vaccine’s different consequences.”

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Hieu (Ba Dinh District, Ha Noi) has two kids and he is willing to let the older of his two children receive vaccines to go to school.

“My kids cannot be isolated in their own home. If they are vaccinated, they can go out. Even though my children can catch coronavirus, the vaccine will be able to constrain the virus,” Mr. Hieu said.

Managers’ opinions

High school principals also have concerns about the upcoming vaccination.

“I’d prefer that the vaccinations take place at schools. The school yard is spacious, and we can guarantee that social distancing will be in force. Moreover, the school administrator can keep track of which students have received a vaccine,” Mr. Huynh Thanh Phu, principal of Nguyen Du High School (District 10, HCM city), said.

He said it is up to parents and students to decide whether their children should receive a vaccine.

“Parents, teachers and students should be aware of the fact that there will be a number of students who are not vaccinated. This could avoid discrimination towards those pupils,” a principal of a high school in Binh Thanh district, HCM City.

HCM City was the first locality selected in Vietnam to pilot administration of COVID-19 vaccines to students. On October 27 and 28, 39,756 children in 21 districts and Thu Duc City were vaccinated.

How are other countries giving vaccines to children?

On September 13, Cuba announced that they would give locally made Covid-19 vaccine to children from two years old, although this vaccine had not been approved by WHO.

The government of Slovakia launched a vaccination program on September 9 for children aged 5 to 11 who were willing to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.

On September 15, the Chinese Ministry of education declared that 95 percent of teachers and students over 18 years old and 91 percent of students from 12 to 17 years old have received full Covid-19 vaccines.

Some countries in Southeast Asia, like Thailand and Singapore, have also begun to give vaccines to youngsters. 

Phuong Chi

Ministry licences Pfizer, Moderna vaccines for inoculation of children

The Ministry of Health has licenced COVID-19 Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for inoculation of children aged from 12-17.